Sands of Time FEMSLASH
by sjslashfan
Summary: What if Line in the Sand had gone a different way? Two chapters in all.
1. Chapter 1

The pain from the Ori's soldier's shot was indescribable. As she fell to the ground, Sam knew that this was it. She'd had injuries before, too many to count. But this one was different, through the haze of pain somehow she knew she wasn't getting home this time.

**SGSGSGSGSGSGSGSGSGSG**

"My laptop. There's a file," gasped Sam. "In my personal directory. Letters mostly. There's one to Cassie. Some other people. Password is fishing."

Cameron Mitchell knew that Sam Carter was trying to prepare him for what she knew was inevitable. He was going to do all that he could to ensure that she made it back to the SGC in one piece, but he also had to be fair to her. Over-the-top optimism wasn't going to hack it this time. He owed it to her to listen, to take in what she was saying, and to reassure her that he would ensure that her wishes - likely her last wishes - were carried out. So he nodded, taking her hand. "Gonna do all we can, Sam. But I heard you, and I won't forget. I swear. But I want you to know we're going to do everything we can to get you home. I just need you to stay strong, so you can change that password when we both get out of here." Sam nodded her head at this compromise. It was obviously the easiest way for him to deal with it. And in some ways it made it easier for her too.

Not that she was giving up; no way. She knew how much she had to lose, and she was going to fight every inch of the way to get back to her wonderful family. But as she felt herself get weaker, she realized that, realistically, it was going to take a miracle.

**SGSGSGSGSGSGSGSGSGSG**

Sam's back arched in pain. Cam scrambled to get her yet another shot of morphine, but as he lifted the blanket to inject her, she weakly pushed his hand away. "Wait, I need to think clearly," she gasped, "there might still be a way." Sweat beaded on her brow; the pain was coming in waves now. Her bandages were flooded with blood, and she knew that it would not be much longer. If she could just figure out a way to interface the crystal from the Ori staff weapon with the device, they might be able to shield the village in time. She could taste the bitter tang of blood in the back of her throat. Internal bleeding. Well, that figured, you don't get a hole that size in your stomach without some major organ damage. She just needed to keep it together until Mitchell had activated the device to cover the whole village. That would be worth it.

"You want me to use this,? asked Cam, holding up the crystal.

Weakly, Sam replied, breathing raggedly, "The power crystal in Merlin's device was depleted. That's why we needed the naquadah generators."

"I'm sorry, is that not apples and oranges?" enquired Mitchell, "Ancient and Ori technology is similar. We can make it work for a short time. Put the crystal in the back of the device." With the last of her reserves, Sam talked Mitchell through the process.

"What's next?" asked Cam.

"Laptop," wheezed Sam. She pray that she'd manage to complete the process before... complete the process in time.

"Sure you wanna do this?" asked Cam.

Sam nodded grimly.

He helped to lever her into position. The pain was blinding, Sam could feel her flesh tearing. She coughed, blood pouring from her mouth.

"Oh God, Sam," cried Mitchell, distraught, wiping the blood away.

She weakly pushed his hand away, reaching for the laptop. With shaking hands she typed in the relevant codes. She hit enter, and then convulsed as the pain became overwhelming. Cam held her in his arms, could see she was trying to say something. He put his ear to her mouth. "Jan't ... love her."

With a final shuddering breath, Sam collapsed in his arms.

**SGSGSGSGSGSGSGSGSGSG**

_My darling Cassie, _

_I'm writing this letter in the hope that you never read it. But if you are reading it, then it has happened. I am so sorry, my love, to be leaving you. You have been a wonderful daughter to me, and to Janet, and I want you to know that you have meant the world to us both. _

_My life only truly opened up when you came into it. I had always thought I was happy before, but your arrival changed everything. I will always regret the way that you came into our lives - losing your family, your friends, everything that had ever meant anything to you - but I have never for one second regretted that you came. Nothing prepared me for the joy that parenting brings, and I feel truly blessed to have experienced it with the perfect daughter. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for that incredible gift. _

_And of course, if it hadn't been for you scheming behind the scenes, Janet and I may never have got together. And that would have been a tragedy. _

_I want you to know that my dying is not a tragedy. You've always known everything about the job that I do, and its risks, and you know what a privilege it has been for me to do it. I've seen and done things most people never even dream about. I've worked with amazing people. I've experienced all different cultures, different technologies, different faiths. And I've had the honor of working with the very best, and truly I have loved it. If, as it now seems, my luck has finally run out, then so be it. Know that I died happy and fulfilled. Know that I died loving you. My only regret is the people that I leave behind, you and my beloved Janet most of all. _

_Look forward now. You have an exciting future in front of you. Follow your dreams, find love, seize every moment. And be happy, that's all I ask. _

_I'll be watching over you. _

_With all my love, _

_Sam _

**SGSGSGSGSGSGSGSGSGSG**

_Dear Jack, _

_I can call you Jack, now, right? In my mind you've always been Jack to me and hey, you'll only get to read this after my death, so I reckon I get to call the shots. _

_I wanted you to know what an honour it has been to work with you. You have always been the best, nobody has ever come close. Yes, there were times that I disagreed with your decisions, but I always respected them, and your reasons for making them. You are a truly compassionate soldier, and if there were more people like you serving in the armed forces, this country - and this world - would be a better place. _

_I thank you for your friendship, your love. You, Daniel and Teal'c are part of my true family and I have always valued your presence in my life, in our lives. The way you three have acted as surrogate fathers to Cassie has brought so much happiness to her, and to us. And the way you all accepted, encouraged even, my relationship with Janet, has meant a great deal. I have had a wonderful life, that has been so enriched by you all. I have known true happiness, how many of us can say that? I pray that you will again find the happiness you had with Sarah, the happiness you deserve. I have missed you since your move to Washington, but I still care deeply what happens to you, and pray that you find someone who deserves you, though she'll have to be a very special lady. _

_So please don't mourn me, remember me with pleasure, with gladness, with laughter. Remember how much you have meant to me, and know that I am happy to die in the service of my country, my world. _

_Take care of Janet and Cassie for me, they'll need you. _

_With fondest love, _

_Carter _

**SGSGSGSGSGSGSGSGSGSG**

_Jan, _

_As I write this, I pray that you never have to read it. _

_I am so sorry, honey, that I didn't retire when you asked me to. I need you to believe me absolutely when I say that I wanted to. I wanted nothing more than to spend the rest of my life in comfort and security with you and Cassie. That's all I wanted, and all I needed. _

_But you know better than most the threats that we face out there. And you know that I could not risk these threats reaching Earth. I know that in some realities Sam Carter had to watch as her Janet and Cassie were caught up in an apocalypse. I just couldn't bear that. So please know that I have done only what I truly believed had to be done. _

_Make no mistake, though, I have loved my job. I have been happy and fulfilled, and I have worked with the best that there is. I have seen some amazing things, had some incredible experiences. Yes, there have been some damned distasteful things along the way, but on the whole my time with SG-1 has been wonderful. _

_But of course, until I got together with you, my love, I had never really understood what it was to be truly, deliriously happy. Why had I not known that before? I thank God every day that Cassie conspired to get us together. You have brought so much joy to me. I hadn't realized before our first kiss - you remember our first kiss, right, overlooking the bay? - that there really are angels walking around this Earth, and that you are the most perfect of them all. And brave, and strong, and beautiful, and indescribably tender. I have loved every moment that I have spent with you, every day at work, on holiday, doing the chores, cleaning the car, just being together. Even the arguments, though we never have argued much, have we? Every minute, every second has been a blessing. And the nights, during which I discovered the true meaning of love, of beauty, of ecstasy. Making love to you was the greatest, the purest, joy to me, and waking up in the morning, with your beautiful body next to mine, your breast in my hand. Truly, I have been happier than anyone deserves to be. _

_My last thoughts on this Earth will be of you. And my only regret is leaving you and Cassie behind. I pray that you will be able to move on. I can't bear the idea of you being unhappy. I want you to find somebody else, to find happiness again. Know that I loved you more than life, than air. And know that we will see each other again. _

_Your ever-loving, _

_Sam _

**SGSGSGSGSGSGSGSGSGSG**

Janet and Cassie decided not to attend Sam's memorial service. Janet wasn't sure she could hold it together in front of Cassie, and Cassie didn't want her mother to go through any more than she already had. And, as Janet reasoned, what could they possibly say that she didn't already know? That Sam was a great person? That she was a model soldier? That she was a brilliant scientist? That she was the best, most loving, most loyal friend there had ever been? Janet knew all that. And she also know, which they didn't, what a loving, tender, wonderful wife and mother she was. They didn't know that she was completely irreplaceable. They had no idea what a huge hole Sam had left in Janet's life. So she didn't need to hear what they had to say. She knew already.

So instead she and Cassie went to Jack's cabin, where they spent a week crying, laughing, looking at photos, talking about Sam, consoling each other.

**SGSGSGSGSGSGSGSGSGSG**

20 years later

"Cassie, come here and help me with this cake," called Janet. She had just collected the huge cake that she had had made for Cassie's 40th birthday. She couldn't believe that their little girl - her little girl, she reminded herself - was about to reach 40. Suddenly Janet felt very old. She was going to be 60 herself next year, she realized, so perhaps she was very old? Since losing Sam, time had seemed almost irrelevant; her own 40th had passed in a blur.

Janet had tried to do what Sam asked, she'd tried to go on with her life. She hadn't been able to remain at the SGC, though, that was asking too much. She'd stayed for nearly six months, but found that every time she heard the sirens, she kept expecting Sam to step back through the wormhole as if nothing had happened. And she couldn't bring herself to walk past Sam's lab, even to venture onto the same level. So she had quit the SGC, and gotten herself a job at the local Memorial Hospital. To start with she worked mainly in the emergency room, figuring that keeping herself frantically busy would help keep her mind off Sam. Of course it didn't, but it did offer the benefit of exhausting her to such an extent physically that she was finally able to sleep. It wasn't the sort of sleep she had enjoyed, curled in her lover's arms, but at least it was sleep of some sort.

After a year or two, she transferred to the surgical ward, which was still busy but in a more ordered fashion. And eventually, she settled down into a life of sorts. She watched Cassie mature, get her medical degree - top marks, of course. And it was with trepidation that she waved Cassie off to do voluntary work in Africa. "I've got to give something back, Mom," Cassie had argued. "I was so lucky when I was a kid to be found by you and Sam. Many of the kids out there have nothing, they have nobody. I'm just going for six months, I need to make a difference, however small." In the end, Cassie had stayed nearly four years. The compassionate young woman had been unable to tear herself away. Janet was happy for her, on one of her three visits out to see her, she realized she had never seen Cassie so fulfilled; and she was thrilled to see what a superb doctor she was. Sam would have been so proud.

Eventually, Cassie had returned home, and had settled less than an hour from Janet. She got a good job at a specialist cancer hospital, and had moved mostly into research, where she had since made a name for herself as a leader in the field. After a few years, she had met and married John Robins, a teacher, and eight years ago, her first baby had been born. At the christening, Janet had been almost overwhelmed to hold Samantha Eve Robins. She would never replace her Sam, but it was a good start at least. Young Samantha was followed three years later by Matthew Jack Robins.

And now Cassie was about to celebrate her 40th, a milestone in anybody's life. Janet was determined to make it memorable for her. In consultation with John, she had invited everybody who had ever been important to Cassie, including two of her colleagues with whom she had worked in Africa, which would be a tremendous surprise; while she had kept up with them, and continued to exchange Christmas and birthday cards, she had not seen them in nearly 15 years. Janet also invited Jack, Daniel, Teal'c, Cameron and Vala.

She had remained in close contact with them all since losing Sam, particularly Jack, Daniel and Teal'c, who had been devastated by Sam's death. Jack had immediately resigned from the military, and despite many pleas from the air force had never been back to the SGC. Daniel had remained there, working purely on the research side, examining artefacts and videos of sites that had been visited by other SG teams. He had never again gone through the 'Gate, explaining that it didn't feel right without Sam.

Cam and Vala joined SG-2, refusing to rebuild SG-1, and to that day SG-1 had never reformed. They duo had become an indomitable pair, achieving much with their usual panache and derring-do. This all came to a halt 10 years ago, though, when Cam had bravely rescued a child from the jaws of a vicious beast on an alien planet. He, and the child, had survived, but the muscles in his left arm were severely damaged, so he no longer had any independent movement in the limb. He was sanguine about it; he merely tucked the withered arm into his left pocket, almost jauntily, and seemed not to let it get him down. He now lectured cadets on surviving in the field, and no recruit questioned his abilities to strip a gun down to its component parts in record time. It was remarkable what he could do with one hand. So Vala now worked more often with Daniel again, working on translations and sometimes coming up with answers that seemed completely wacky but often turned out to be correct. She had also become quite the scientist.

Teal'c spent most of his time on Chulak, rising to become the planet's ambassador to Earth, where he was always very warmly welcomed.

And Jack, whom everybody had assumed would hide out in his cabin, surprised them all by selling it, and moving to a small place near Janet. He had remained near her, ostensibly running a small charter aircraft business, but in reality so that he could offer support to Carter's widow and daughter. And Janet loved him for it. He was now nearly 75, but was as vital and strong as ever, his impish humour keeping them strong. Sometimes Janet could detect the sadness behind his eyes, but he refused to show it in front of her.

"I'm coming Mom," laughed Cassie. "Just how many people is this monster supposed to feed? We're not living in biblical times, you know, we don't have 5,000 to feed!"

Janet slapped her lightly on the back. "I'm not having people complaining we don't give them enough to eat," she said. "And I'm sure your two will be only too happy to take the rest of it home."

The party was a huge success; Cassie had been overwhelmed to see everybody there, and had been quite choked up when they all called on her to give a speech. Stumblingly, she thanked them all for being there, told them all how much it meant to her. She thanked Janet for a wonderful childhood and for her continued valued presence in her life. And she concluded with a very moving tribute to Sam, "without whom I wouldn't be here now, and who showed me the meaning of love, of decency, of sacrifice."

Janet slipped quietly out of house, and perched quietly on the bench that she used to share with Sam. As she often did, when she wanted to commune with her late wife, she looked up at the stars, convinced that Sam was somehow looking down on her from above. "We did good, hon, didn't we? Our little girl's turned out just fine." And she gave in to the relief of tears.

She didn't notice Vala follow her outside. For once Vala knew to hold back, and it was only as she blew her nose that Vala came over to her. She put her arm round Janet, and pulled her to her. "Thanks," Janet whispered quietly. "Most of the time I can cope, but on big occasions like this, it seems like she only died yesterday."

Vala looked at her, keenly. "Janet," she said, hesitatingly, "I don't know whether I should be telling you this. But I think I must, I think Sam would want me to. And I think you would want me to, I hope I'm not wrong."

Janet looked at her, enquiringly. "Go ahead," she said, "I need to know what you have to say."

So Vala told her about her latest discovery. She reminded Janet of the time that SG-1 had gone back to 1969, and it was only because Hammond had looked up the timing of the solar flares that they were able to return to the right time. "I don't know why I didn't think of this before," said Vala, "but I think I've worked out what we need to do go back in time, to send a message to ourselves in 2007 and stop Sam being killed in that village. If we can do that, the last 20 years won't have happened, and Sam will have been a part of all our lives."

Janet pulled away from Vala, fear in her eyes. Fear that what she was suggesting could actually be attempted. Could she risk trying to get Sam back? Could she cope if it didn't work? Breathing deeply, and slowly, she looked up into Vala's eyes. "We've got to try," she whispered.


	2. Chapter 2

**Year 2027 **

"There's just no way they're going to allow it," said Jack, sadly. "Much as we want to erase the last 20 years, the present administration's quite happy with the way things are. We've got to find a way round it."

Janet nodded her agreement. She and Jack had had many discussions about the current political situation. It seemed that the right wing had taken the country by storm, and as so often happened, had gone far too far. Their current president was anti so many things, including stem cell research, religious tolerance and, importantly in this issue, gay marriage. So, despite the number of times Sam had been instrumental in saving the planet, there was no way he'd allow anything he had worked for to be put at risk to save one colonel, however brilliant she was.

"It's just not fucking right, she gave everything for this world," said Janet, quietly, bitterly.

Jack was taken aback; Janet rarely, if ever, swore. "Hey, we'll fix it. We've done it before, we'll do it again, right?"

Tears sprang to the doctor's eyes. How could he be so optimistic? And, realistically, what could he do? He was well into his seventies, and while he remained vital and strong, this was hardly a job for a pensioner.

"I know what you're thinking," said Jack. "We'll get Teal'c and all the others in on it. Daniel and Vala will come up with some brilliant plan, and we'll make sure it works. It _has_ to work."

Janet saw the determination in his jaw. She knew that the last 20 years had been hard on him too. At an age when he should have been taking it easy, he had adopted Janet and Cassie as part of his family, and had been so strong for them. Janet suspected that Sam had asked him to watch over them; he had certainly fulfilled his duties. And Cassie's two kids, Samantha and Matthew adored him like a grandfather. An eccentric, anarchic, Simpsons-obsessed grandfather, but a much-loved grandfather nonetheless.

And his suggestion of getting a hold of Teal'c was a good one. Granted Teal'c was about 100 years older than the rest of them (Janet never did get a straight answer from the big alien about his date of birth), but he didn't look a day over 40, and was showing no signs whatsoever of slowing down. As Chulak's ambassador to Earth, he was a frequent visitor to the planet, and always made a point of dropping in to see Janet. He had not forgotten about 'Colonel Carter' either, and often spoke of her with affection. In fact, when he was with Janet, he was almost chatty, which would have made Sam laugh. Oh God, Sam, thought Janet, anguished. She couldn't bear it if this spark of hope were extinguished now. She realized she had been kidding herself. She had tried to live a full life over the last 20 years, but everything had been overshadowed by Sam's absence. Everything she did, she wondered about what Sam's reaction would have been. And even joyful occasions, like Cassie's marriage and the birth of her two children were, to her, just reminders of how much Sam was missing. And how much she was missing Sam.

Sam had told her to find someone else if she were to die first. But it had never occurred to Janet to even try. There was only one person she wanted to share her life with, and if she weren't there, then she'd rather be alone. Not that she was really alone, her friends at the SGC would never have allowed that. But she had never been even slightly tempted to look for a new partner. She knew that nobody would ever live up to Sam.

**SGSGSGSGSGSGSG**

"So Vala," asked Daniel. "What are you actually saying? Is there anything we can do without getting the administration on our side?"

Vala had spent the last three months developing a computer programme that would allow them to predict, exactly, when a solar flare would occur. And, as they had been able to do when the team was transported back to 1969 - nearly 30 years ago now, Daniel realized - they could move back and forth in time. Of course, as they had done in 2001, they didn't need to travel themselves, just send a note to themselves in 2007 that would somehow stop Sam getting killed by the Ori soldier. But of course the plan would all come to nothing, because there was no way General Bingham would allow them to use the Stargate for that purpose. Bingham had been in charge of the SGC for the past five years. He was by no means a bad man, but he was very part of the establishment and would not understand, far less support, their actions. Also, he had never known Sam.

"But we don't need the administration's backing," said Vala impatiently. "That's what I've been trying to tell you all. We can do it from any planet, provided we can work out a way to predict the flares in their solar system, and provided they'll give us access to their 'Gate. We just need the GDO and the codes from 2007, which I have on record."

"I believe I may have the answer," said Teal'c, who had arrived on Earth the day before, and who had been brought up to speed with the plans. "The solar system on Chulak is not dissimilar to the one on this planet. And your General Bingham has recently permitted me to keep a GDO to facilitate diplomatic missions. I believe it would be expedient to attempt your plan from Chulak."

Janet gasped. Was this really going to happen? Was there really a chance?

**SGSGSGSGSGSGSG**

Janet went to see Cassie. Now that it looked as though they might, just, have a chance - however small - she knew that she owed it to their daughter to tell her what they were attempting.

"There are no guarantees, Cass," said Janet, "Hell, we don't even know if Vala will be able to work out how to predict flares from Chulak. But I wanted you to know that we are trying. You don't mind me trying, do you Cassie?" Janet swallowed, her voice thick with emotion. "It's just that if there is any way at all to stop Sam dying in 2007, I've got to try. I love you and the kids SO much, never doubt that. But I need her with me, by my side, not just in my memories."

Cassie grasped both of Janet's hands. "Of course you must try Mom," she said, tears in her eyes. "I can't think of anything better than having Sam here right now. I still miss her too, Mom, and I know how hard it's been for you. I know you try to put a brave face on things, but let's be honest, you're only living a half life. I want Sam back, and I want all of you back too. And I want the kids to meet Sam, the best and the bravest there ever was. I know they get fed up listening to me talk about her all the time, if you can turn back time, you can at least spare them that!" Janet smiled, appreciating Cassandra's attempts to lighten the mood.

**SGSGSGSGSGSGSG**

Luckily, General Bingham was somewhat in awe of Teal'c. The big alien had been a part of the Stargate programme almost from the beginning, so his wealth of knowledge was incalculable. And he was the only remaining member of the original team to still be travelling through the Stargate on a regular basis. So when Teal'c, in his capacity as Chulak ambassador to Earth, requested assistance with an inter-planetary astronomical survey, he readily agreed.

It was Bingham's suggestion that Vala be sent to Chulak to 'render all possible assistance', a task Vala pretended to balk at. They couldn't believe it had been so easy. Mitchell volunteered to act as liaison between the two planets on the subject, so his visits to and from Chulak became commonplace. His facility for 'creative storytelling' ensured that Bingham never suspected a thing. And he was able to give Janet regular reports on the progress being made.

Janet and Cassie were frustrated at the slow speed of Vala's research; already four months had passed, and there was still no definite pattern to the solar flares on the planet. But Vala remained confident, knowing that if she could just find the link between environmental conditions on the planet and the behaviour of its sun, she would crack it. She just needed time to assimilate all the data.

**SGSGSGSGSGSGSG**

It was in a very subdued mood that Janet 'celebrated' her 60th birthday, almost five months after the research began. The last thing she wanted was a party, but she had been persuaded by Cassie, Daniel and Jack that she had to act normally if they were to avoid arousing suspicions. So she reluctantly agreed to a gathering of all those most important to her at a local restaurant, leaving Cassie to organize the details. She was genuinely thrilled that Teal'c and Vala were able to come; one day out of their research was a small price to pay for their company. Janet had not realized that Cassie had another trick up her sleeve, until she saw Jennifer Hailey - now a colonel - walk into the restaurant. "Try not to look shocked, Mom," whispered Cassie. "She's been writing a new computer program that she may be able to adapt for Vala to use on Chulak."

Cadet Hailey, as she was then, had been a protege of Sam's, and Janet had got to know her well over the years. She had watched her stellar career with pride, and knew that Sam would have been delighted with the once-bolshy cadet's rapid progression through the ranks. Many had considered her a worthy successor to Colonel Carter, but Jennifer had enough humility to realize that she could only ever aspire to being a pale imitation of her hero.

"Jenny," said Janet, later that night in her kitchen. "We can't ask you to do this, your career could be ruined. If Bingham even suspects what's going on, he'll have you court-martialed before you can blink."

Jennifer looked at Janet coolly. "Janet," she said, "whatever it takes, we're going to do it. Quite apart from what you - and the rest of us - want, if Sam had been back here 20 years ago, I doubt very much it would have taken a further four years to defeat the Ori. It took me and the rest of the team that long to gain even a basic understanding of how the inter-dimensional machine worked, even with Sam's notes. Face it, she was a genius, one of a kind. And she would have been able to save countless millions who died before we could work it all out. That's got to be worth one lousy career, hasn't it? And anyway," she grinned, "I'll only get hauled up if we fail, and I don't intend for any of this to go wrong. I don't 'do' failure, remember?"

Janet laughed, remembering the heated discussions Jennifer and Sam had had, with Sam trying, and failing, to convince her protege that you can sometimes learn as much from failure as you can from success.

Jenny put her hand on Janet's arm. "That's one lesson I've had to learn the hard way," she said, "but I know now that Sam was right. She usually was, wasn't she?"

Unable to speak, Janet nodded.

**SGSGSGSGSGSGSG**

Somehow, Jennifer managed to persuade Bingham that acceding to Teal's request for further assistance would be a good idea. Teal'c was keen for Vala to complete her research; he was having trouble persuading the rest of the Jaffa Council that Vala was working to develop an early-warning system that would benefit them all. Fortunately, Vala was a skilled liar, but after nearly six months even her delaying tactics were beginning to sound a little hollow. So both he and Vala had been delighted to welcome Colonel Hailey, and her new souped-up computer programme.

Within three weeks, the two 'geeks' (as Jack had insisted on calling them) were confident that the flare prediction system was foolproof. In four days' time, just before dawn, the time would be perfect to send a note.

**SGSGSGSGSGSGSG**

"So what do we put?" asked Jennifer, on a visit to Janet's house. "We can't tell Sam not to go; a whole village was at risk, there's no way she would have backed down from that, whatever the danger to her. And we can't get the SGC to cancel the mission, there were too many diplomatic irons in the fire, she would never have been able to pull out."

"I know," said Janet, "the wound was through her stomach, if she had worn body armour, I'm sure she would have survived. Let me write it."

_Sam, _

_I know that this next mission is vital, and equally I know that nothing I say will stop you from going on it. Just promise me one thing, I beg you. Do not, at any stage, remove your vest. Make absolutely sure that it has the enhanced body armour inserts. Wear it day and night. Do this please, my love, for me, and for Cassie. We love you. We need you here with us. _

_Janet_

**SGSGSGSGSGSGSG**

**2007**

"Unscheduled offworld activation," came the announcement through the tannoy. "Defence teams to the 'Gate room."

Sam met General O'Neill on his way down to the 'Gate room. "So what d'ya think then, Carter," he asked, "another bad guy coming to warn us of our impending doom?"

Sam smiled. "Could be Sir, or could just be an SG team coming home a bit early."

"It's SG-1's IDC," said Harriman, confused. SG-1 hadn't been offworld for three days.

"Not the first time somethin' like this has happened," said O'Neill. "Open the iris, see if lots of Carters start coming through the 'Gate."

Sam laughed. The iris rolled back, and a few seconds later, a piece of paper fluttered to the floor. The 'Gate shut off.

O'Neill stepped forward and perused the note. "This one's for you, Carter," he said. "Looks like the doc has found a new way of getting mail to you."

"So you know nothing about this, Janet,?" Sam asked, when she managed to corner her lover in the infirmary.

Janet shook her head. "Nope, nothing at all. But that is definitely my handwriting. Oh God Sam, it must be from the future. You must ask to be excused from the next mission. This can only mean one thing."

"Janet," replied Sam. "You know I can't ask for that. Hell, you've even admitted as much in the note. This is my job. I have to do it. I can't just not go. We all risk our lives every time we step through the Stargate. It's what we signed up to do. And the villagers are relying on us; who knows how many of them would die if we don't do this? And I am currently the only one who can operate the device. You can't ask me to condemn hundreds to death on the strength of this note. And somehow you knew that when you wrote it. I promise you, I'll keep my vest on at all times. And I'll stay inside as much as possible, which is where I'll be of most use anyway, operating the device. I'll be safer than the rest of them."

Janet swallowed and looked up at her lover. "Okay, hon," she said gently. "Just promise me you won't take any unnecessary risks. You're not going until tomorrow, so you've gotta ask Siler to check out your vests, all of SG-1s vests."

"I'm on my way," said Sam. "And I'll ask him to add extra inserts, just to be sure."

It was past midnight when Sam got back home that night. She had been caught up all day making preparations for the mission. As well as the final adjustments to the device, and the naquadah generators, she had kept her word to Janet and personally supervised Siler's work on SG-1s vests. These were now bulkier than was really practical, but because of the note, nobody complained. In truth, they were all spooked, and wanted to do all they could to ensure the mission passed off without incident.

Janet was already in bed, but Sam could tell by her body language that she wasn't fully asleep. She slid in next to her, and Janet turned towards her, clinging to her tightly. "Hey, Jan," Sam said quietly. "It's gonna be okay. I'll make sure of it, I promise."

**SGSGSGSGSGSGSG**

36 hours later on P9C-882

The villagers were celebrating the successful hiding of the village from the Ori, when suddenly the light from the displacement field flashed and the field collapsed. Sam felt a chill of apprehension. Was this what Janet's note was warning her about? Ensuring that her vest was fully secured, she headed back to her temporary lab. "Okay, I've got some good news and some bad news," Sam told SG-1. " In order to bring everything back completely, the machine has to maintain a connection with every single molecule that it sends out of phase. Now obviously that requires a lot of energy, so I implemented a failsafe that would automatically bring everything back into our dimension in the event of a power disruption. Well, it was just a slight fluctuation, but it was enough to trigger the failsafe."

"So what do we do?" asked Mitchell. Sam frowned; she had thought she had stabilized the power supply, and knew that the problem wouldn't resolve easily.

But by the end of a long night, Sam had rigged an Ancient capacitor similar to the kind used in the Stargates between the device and the generators. She hoped that this would collect the power and feed it more evenly.

Just then, at least five Ori fighters came into view. "You ready yet Sam?" radioed Mitchell, urgently.

"Nearly there," she replied, working her keyboard frantically. If just she could initiate the device... she heard something and, looking up just a second too late, she saw an Ori soldier fire his weapon directly at her. She felt blinding pain and could feel her ribs breaking. Falling to the floor in agony, Sam saw Mitchell eliminate the soldier.

"Sam, it's okay, you're gonna be okay," Mitchell crouched next to his fallen friend.

"Activate the device," she gasped.

Once the two of them were safe in the displaced field, Mitchell knelt by Sam, gently undoing her vest and checking for injury. "Gonna be sore as hell for a while," he grimaced, "looks to me like that vest saved your life, though."

A flash of panic went through Sam. So this was what Janet had meant? She'd probably be dead by now if she hadn't kept the vest on. It had been cumbersome and awkward, and more than once she had been tempted to remove it to make her work easier. But she had promised Janet, and she always kept her promises to her lover.

With Sam's instructions, Mitchell took the crystal from the Ori soldier's weapon to use as a temporary power source. In this way, they were able to ensure that there was sufficient power to include the whole village in the displacement field. Sam was horrified to see that many of the villagers were being killed by the Ori soldiers, but the military side of her knew that she had to wait for the Ori to leave in their ships, to prepare to bomb the village from the air. "Now, Cam," she called, urgently. Mitchell pressed the button, just in time to shield the village from the air strike. The village was safe.

**SGSGSGSGSGSGSG**

Back in the infirmary.

Janet looked down at her sleeping lover.

"How's she doin', doc?" asked O'Neill, with Mitchell hovering in the background.

"Four broken ribs, and minor internal bleeding," said Janet sadly. "But we've fixed the bleeding, now we've just got to give her time."

"Ouch," said the general, "she's going to be real grouchy, those ribs can be pretty nasty."

"She'll be fine," smiled Janet. "She's gonna live to fight another day, and that's all that really matters."

Later, when the others had left, Sam's eyes fluttered open, fixing on the best sight in the world. "Hey Jan," she whispered. Janet took her hand gently, and placed a soft kiss on her lips. "You saved me. If it hadn't been for your note, I'd have taken that damned vest off. It's not comfortable, you know, rewiring capacitors with that thing on."

"From now on, you're gonna wear 'that thing' whatever you're doing," laughed Janet. "At the mall, at the gym, round the house..."

Sam grimaced in pain. "Hopin' you'll make the occasional exception in the bedroom, hon," she joked.

"_That_, I think we can allow. I'll be there to protect you then," Janet smiled.

"Nobody can do a better job of that than you," replied Sam seriously. "Love you so much."

**SGSGSGSGSGSGSG**

**20 years later - revised timeline **

"Cassie, come here and help me with this cake," called Janet. She had just collected the huge cake that she had had made for Cassie's 40th birthday. She couldn't believe that their little girl was about to reach 40. But Janet didn't feel old herself amazingly, even though she would hit 60 next year, Sam the year after. Perhaps love really did keep you young?

"I'm coming Mom," laughed Cassie. "Just how many people is this monster supposed to feed? We're not living in biblical times, you know, we don't have 5,000 to feed!"

Janet slapped her lightly on the back. "I'm not having people complaining we don't give them enough to eat," she said. "And I'm sure your two will be only too happy to take the rest of it home."

Cassie's two kids Samantha and Matthew were out in the back yard playing football with Sam. Janet was forever amazed at Sam's resilience and energy. Despite losing the use of her left arm during a daring rescue when she literally pulled a small child from the jaws of a vicious beast on an alien planet ten years ago, she remained as fit and vital as ever. Mitchell had been pissed at her that day, he had felt it was his duty to rescue the child. But Sam had seen somebody smaller and weaker in trouble, and her instincts had kicked in.

In a strange way, Janet was almost pleased that Sam had been hurt in that way. Of course she was devastated at the damage done to her arm, but a part of her was relieved that Sam would now no longer be called to active service. So she was safe, and always would be.

Sam remained at the SGC, adapting remarkably quickly to her disability. She refused to let her withered arm stop her doing whatever she wanted. And she now reveled in having the time she had always wanted to devote to her scientific research, which she combined with lecturing, both at the Academy and at the SGC, where the new recruits clearly considered her to be something of a hero. Janet couldn't help but agree.

Sam came running in from the garden, and pulled Janet into a tight embrace. Kissing her lover resoundingly, she said, "I can't believe it's her 40th today. Been a hell of a ride all round, hasn't it?"

Janet cupped her face and kissed her back. "It sure has, my sweet girl. It sure has."


End file.
